Only in Marin

The town [of Fairfax] has been trying to hammer out its regulations to allow up to two more dispensaries to operate, but the issue has proven to be more challenging than one might imagine. The town council has held 18 meetings on cannabis regulations.

As I watch my postal carrier limp from the truck, I know it can only mean one thing, RH has delivered another ginormous catalog, 700 pages packed with leather chairs that would make a dominatrix scream a safe word.

When it comes to cannabis, Marin’s cities are in a quandary, putting those in that sector and those wishing to open a business in a holding pattern.

Almost 69 percent of voters in Marin approved adult-use of cannabis legalization in 2016 via Prop 64. But as of this writing, mid-May, there is exactly one place in Marin to buy cannabis, Marin Alliance for Medical Marijuana, the oldest dispensary in the country. That said, the Fairfax outlet is only allowed to sell medical cannabis. Voters there recently said “yes” to allowing drivers from Marin Alliance to deliver recreational cannabis within the town limits.

One day the SMART train will blow though San Rafael on the way to its southern stop point Larkspur, but for now that extension is nothing but heartache for a few businesses along Francisco Boulevard West. The city has closed the road to accommodate the construction that must take place, and the closure will stretch into 2019.

Marin loves it animals. Whether it’s a prized parakeet or a beloved basset hound, pets are treated not like family but more like members of the royals. Designer organic food abounds and water bowls overflow with filtered H2O.

It’s summertime, and the living is uneasy, at least for 46 percent of Bay Area residents.

The annual poll from the Bay Area Council, a public-policy shop backed by business interests, shows that almost half of the folks who call the nine-county Bay Area home, are thinking of moving in the next few years; backing up the truck with all of their worldly possessions, except for that creepy painting by Uncle Earl of the horse with the eyes that follow you, and getting the hell out of here.

Ultrgenyx Pharmaceutical, the Novato-based rare disease specialist is on fire. The company earned approvals for two different medications within six months from the Food and Drug Administration, a feat that Big Pharma companies four times the size of Ultragenyx can\\\'t boast.

It was only a matter of time. Sears in Marin is toast. Anybody who spent time in the Sears store at San Rafael’s Northgate Center knew the retailer wasn’t long for the world, the Sears brand has been on the ropes for years. It was taken over by hedge funder Eddie Lampert in 2005, who failed to invest in the retailer allowing the stores to become outdated as retailers were going digital. Lambert controls ESL Investments, the hedge fun he founded. ESL and Lambert own close to 30 percent of Sears and Lambert is chief executive officer.

It was 2000 and I ran across the news that someone had purchased what was then known as Sonoma magazine. Since all things printed had already been declared DOA, I sent along a note of congratulations on the deal and wished them well.

Merlone Geir Partners, which owns the Northgate Mall in San Rafael, would like to know how you feel about the place?

More to the point, they would like it if you felt the shopping center was a place you could call your own, a place for everyone to hang out.

The investment firm that bought the mall in January did a survey to help them “elevate” the mall and since the mall is a neighbor and I am a neighborly type of person, I took the survey. It covered some standard areas, how often you visit, why and what do you buy.

North Coast Land Holdings, which bought the old 126-acre Golden Gate Baptist Theological Seminary site in Strawberry Point for $84 million in 2014, submitted plans to the county to put a grad school on the site, along with replacing 198 living units and building an additional 93 units.

In this Issue

It has been almost two years since the devastating firestorms hit the North Bay in 2017, burning down 5,143 homes and leaving nothing but ash and debris in its wake. While to many the incident leave...

It has been almost two years since the devastating firestorms hit the North Bay in 2017, burning down 5,143 homes and leaving nothing but ash and debris in its wake. While to many the incident leave...

When an atmospheric river began dumping rain on Sonoma County in late February, no one at The Barlow was too concerned. The City of Sebastopol received frequent updates on potential flooding from So...

Located at 1410 Neotomas Ave. in Santa Rosa,NorthBay biz magazine is a monthly business-to-business publication covering Napa, Sonoma and Marin counties. This year, the magazine is celebrating 43 years of continuous operation. It originally hit the stands in 1975, when it was called Sonoma Business, and only covered Sonoma County. Norm and Joni Rosinski and John Dennis, acquired it in 2000 and changed its name to cover an expanded market. Today, the magazine is part of Amaturo Sonoma Media Group. More here..